Event

Webinar: Re-thinking the Trans-Pacific Partnership

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Since its release last fall, the Trans-Pacific Partnership (TPP) has deeply divided public opinion.

The mega-regional deal—signed, but not yet ratified by twelve Pacific Rim countries—cuts across many areas economic policy. If put into force, analysts predict modest gains from lower tariffs on goods and services; however, it is the agreement’s non-trade provisions, such as intellectual property and investment, which promise the greatest impact.

In a recent commentary, IISD recommended that governments do not ratify the agreement as it is. Rather, the TPP should serve as a jumping-off point for a new global dialogue on the right direction for trade agreements.

This webinar delved in the details of the TPP, highlighting the constraints that its provisions will place on public policies for sustainable and inclusive growth. It also generated a discussion on what the TPP—and other regional economic agreements—would look like if their chief aim was supporting the Sustainable Development Goals.

Speakers:

Howard Mann, Senior International Law Advisor, IISD

Nathalie Bernasconi-Osterwalder, Group Director, Economic Law and Policy, IISD

Michael Geist, Professor of Law and holder of the Canada Research Chair in Internet and E-commerce Law, University of Ottawa